How To Reduce Stress As A Solopreneur And Or Freelancer

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Stress in the workplace has become a significant health risk.

In many countries, more than half of the labor force are working more hours than they are paid for. So, if you’re working a 9 to 5 at your desk thinking that you suffer from stress alone. Remember that you are not alone. Stress from work is not new and is an issue globally.

Stress is a fact of life no matter how anyone tries to spin it. There is no simple cure for stress because it’s going to affect you day after day. Whether your stress is due to your 9 to 5 desk job working to make someone else’s big dreams come true or you are an entrepreneur with your own business to run, you’re stressed.

The level of stress is different. When you work for someone else, the stress of being accountable for something you’re not overly invested in other than a paycheck is stressful because you’re answering to someone else. You’re under a microscope every moment, and your future is in the hands of someone else.

When you’re your own boss, the level of stress you face is extreme, but it’s for a more rewarding purpose. You’re in control of your schedule, you are the person you need to impress, and every moment you work hard is for you; it’s not for anyone else.

Easy Ways to Reduce Stress as a Solopreneur

Being a freelancer allows you to introduce various ways of reducing stress at home while you work.

It’s not always easy to figure out what works for you when stress is inevitable. Meeting deadlines, finding the schedule that works for you, and learning to manage your own career at your own pace is stressful. The difference is this stress is good stress compared to the kind of stress you face working for someone else.

As you learn to reduce stress, you’ll find the best ways that work for you.

Try these basic tips below to help you reduce stress:

Exercise and be active every day

Get plenty of sleep at night

Eat a healthy diet

Get dressed each morning (even if you don’t plan to leave your house that day)

Declutter your house and your workstation

Find an organization system that works for you

Set specific hours that work best for you and your creative mind

Spend some time out in the creative outlet like co-working space

Take vacation and work remotely

Each of these tips helps to reduce stress from work, and each one is most helpful when you customize it to your own lifestyle. Combine them with the 3 tips below and you’ll find it’s much easier to manage your life as a solopreneur.

Create a Roadmap

This is one of the most important things you can do for your new career as a freelancer. It’s the simple act of creating a roadmap or creating a plan for your business.

There is no right or wrong way to create a roadmap for your new career. You’ll have an end goal, and you’ll pave your map with smaller goals designed to keep you motivated to reach your end goal.

Your roadmap can be vast or it can be one you create each day to reach daily success. Whatever works best for you is the way you create your roadmap.

You cannot go blindly into work each day, so a roadmap is here to help you get started, stay focus, and reach your daily goals.

Use A Long-Term Contract With One or Two Clients

Picking up smaller clients and projects regularly is a great way to foster positive business relationships as an entrepreneur, but work is less stressful when you create a few long-term client contracts.

What this means is finding a few clients who want to work with you for the long haul, and creating a contract with them.

When you have an agreement in place to work on projects with one or two clients for a year, 18-months, or any other long-term timeframe, you can give them your best.

You know what you’re earning, when you’re earning, and you’re able to take your time working on these projects with a much more productive mind. It eases a vast amount of stress freelancers carry wondering where their next check is coming from, how the mortgage is being paid next month, or where they’re funds will come from.

Embrace the Stress

It’s a tip most people don’t bother with, because it doesn’t seem obvious. Embrace the stress you feel as a freelancer.

As mentioned above, the amount of stress you face as your own boss is greater than the stress you’ll feel as someone else’s employee, but it’s a different kind of stress.

This is your stress, and your job is to use it to motivate you. Your stress can help you make bigger changes and open new doors in your career. It’s your job to use your stress to further your career and make the changes your business needs to grow.

When you feel stressed, write down what bothers you. Then take that fear and break it down into smaller goals that help you overcome the fear. Now you’re motivated, and you have a plan.

Final Thoughts

Working for yourself is a freedom many people don’t understand. It’s not all about sleeping in and working when you want. It’s about understanding your work is your work. If it doesn’t get done and done well, you don’t have a job.

Find a pattern that works for you. Find a schedule that’s all your own, create your own set of hours, and work hard. Your business is your baby, and you must nurture it and help it grow into the successful and thriving business you want to it to become.

About The Author

A Sydney born writer who writes and edits for Carter Capner Law. She enjoys writing about personal growth and productivity. In her parallel life, she loves reading and still finding her own way to stay productive every day.